AstraZeneca scraps 450m investment in vaccine plant

Rachel Reeves has suffered a blow to her hopes of winning back business confidence after AstraZeneca cancelled a 450m investment in a vaccine manufacturing plant in Merseyside.

- DAVID MADDOX

The announcement provided a harsh reality check at the end of a week where the chancellor had hoped to use a major speech to get her economic growth agenda back on track.

Her attempts to woo major companies again with pledges of significant investments, including the expansion of Heathrow and a new Silicon Valley between Oxford and Cambridge, had already fallen flat. Praise for her speech from business leaders had not been met with actions as Tesco, Sainsbury’s and two major universities announced job losses.

While the row with AstraZeneca appeared to be around previously promised subsidies, there is deep disquiet among business leaders about the hike in employers’ national insurance contributions and a rollout of employment rights with a repeal of restrictions on industrial action.

Tory shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said: “There’s no vaccine for incompetence. In the same week they talked about growth, Labour seem to have fumbled a deal with AstraZeneca, one of the UK’s largest companies and central to the critical life sciences sector.